Introduction: We get back to our coverage of BassJam with a few
new rods, a number of which were designed and tested right here in Northern
California. Not surprisingly many of these rods are designed for flipping and
pitching but a number were also focused on finesse applications.

iRods has been busy refining their
lineup and the latest rods look sharp

iROD: The iRod Genesis series was
introduced earlier this season and the company has four main pro anglers that
are also the company's rod designers, this team includes Bub Tosh, Fred
Roumbanis, Gabe Bolivar and Matt Newman. The new iRod sticks now feature a
cleaner look and feel and the weights and actions of the rods have also been
further refined.

Swimbait Angler Matt Newman shows
us the new iRod sticks

The rods have a clean overall look and feel and
the green highlights make the rods instantly recognizable. The rods are 7' to
7'11" in length and there are a number of signature sticks including Gabe's "Rip
Rap Special," Bub's "Punch Rod" and Fred's "Power Finesse Stick." One of the
best things about this new series is that they are affordable retailing for
$149.99 each.

Pro Anglers Skeet Reese and Brent
Ehrler joke with each other at the show

W&M: Skeet Reese was at the show with his latest signature rods
including his new Micro Honeycomb spinning rods. These rods balanced out well
with his signature spinning reels and feature the company's proprietary blank
which makes use of three separate layers of high modulus graphite wrapped around
a high density graphite core that is reinforced with woven fibers and bound by
the company's honeycomb resin. The blank is then outfitted with micro-guides for
increased sensitivity and lighter weight.

Skeet shows Cal how his new
spinning rod balances out

The rod felt good in hand and features Skeet's
black and yellow theme, this is one rod you can spot from a mile away. Cal found
the balance point was right at the reel which gave the rod a light and balanced
feel. Keeping true to Skeet's philosophy of building products that everyday
anglers can afford this micro-rod bucks the trend of premium prices with a
retail MSRP of only $89.99.

Skeet signs hats for fans

Zombie Rod & Tackle: At the show Zombie
rods partnered with Black Dog swimbaits and it is no surprise that these two
brands are allied as they are both spawned from the waters of the California
Delta. We previously reviewed Zombie's 7'3" casting rod which can handle
flipping, pitching and working towater baits like the Black Dog Lunker Punker.

We know Zombie rods best for their
casting sticks

Zombie Rods are known for their balance which
allows anglers to flip and pitch heavier baits all day long with reduced
fatigue. While we best know Zombie rods for their powerful casting rods we got a
look at the company's finesse spinning rod at the show.

Justin (left) of Zombie rods and
Grant (right) of Black Dog show us their latest products

This spinning rod is designed for truly
lightweight 1/32-1/4oz. lures and is constructed from a high quality Toray
graphite blank and equipped with Fuji SiC guides with stainless steel frames.

A look at Zombie's spinning rod

This rod features the same
enthusiast look and feel of the company's flipping sticks

This light spinning rod features the same
enthusiast look and feel of Zombie's other rods and the custom painted blank
looks different colors depending on lighting and the rod is outfitted with metal
components that not only look sharp but aid in the overall balance of this $304
dollar rod.

A look at the spinning rod's clean
looking blank

St. Croix: At the show St. Croix made some
new additions to their popular Mojo Bass mainstream line of rods. The new Mojo
Glass rods are designed for deep cranking and feature an all glass construction
for a forgiving parabolic action that is optimal for working deep divers and
keeping fish hooked when they strike deep down.

There is a new Mojo rod coming...

Like other Mojo Bass rods the new cranking rods
feature a purple blank paired with a Fuji ECS reel seat and a split grip design
with premium grade cork handles. The rod will make use of Batson Forecast hard
aluminum-oxide guides with double plated black chrome frames.

...and it is a glass rod designed
for deep cranking

The rod features a split grip with
quality cork grips

The new Mojo Glass rods will be available in 7'4"
and 7'8" lengths and will retail for a very reasonable $120 dollars each. They
are about two weeks away from arriving on store shelves.

Stan Lafeuer show us the new Mojo
Glass Cranking rod

The coverage isn't over yet, on display were
plenty of other new lures outside of the swimbaits we covered yesterday and a
surprising number of companies with new apparel options for bass anglers looking
to supplement their lifestyle with a little bass mojo...stay tuned.